logica: Critical question: do you think Monaco and France don't know what they are doing...or they don't have physiotherapists? Anyway, lets continue to wait on Puyol even as Pique continues to leak goals.

AjanleKoko: All this debate about Puyol vs Abi. Cancer survivor vs crippled old warrior.
Na FCB cause am

dmcdad:
Piqué is arguably the worst defender in the world. There is nothing anyone will say to convince me otherwise. I just wish he gets seriously injured or something. That guy is highly annoying. ..

logica: Lol. From best defender in 2009 to the worst in 2013. Piqué is useless without Puyol. He said so himself. So what happens when Puyol retires? By now he should've been able to lead the defense.

flolancracker: ^^^ you're right.

What time is tonight's match going down and will it be played at †he camp nou?


Long live FCB!

dmcdad:
8pm Nigerian time... It's at La Rosaleda... Malaga's home

flolancracker: thanks.

We beat them even with demichelis and isco in their squad. Hopefully, we'll walk over them now that they are weaker..

eyoniggar: Pique has been shiitt since last season, I keep telling mentioning it but it seemed like i was hating. He is done with!!

Mcleo007: I cant get why you guys suggest that Pique is done. He is a quality CB; if you have played active football before, you will understand the assignage that comes with playing as a 5. In the role of CB, the No5 plays a little higher on the pitch than the no6. He is the one that marks the deep playing attacker, and is so open to being outwitted for pace and dribble because his approach is on the slow. Defensive flaws are easy to spot in his game, which does not reduce his defensive abilities. The no6 on fhe other hand plays a more reserved role and is the one we know to be the last man in defence. He is the finisher of all defensive works. His game is easier as he is afforded good time to read the game and correct the errors of his partner, if any. This is the reason someone like Puyol and Maacherano cannot make a decent defensive pairing or why Chygrinski never fitted into the Barca mode because he is natural no6 like Puyol. The case is similar to Pique and Batra's pairing towards the end of last season. Same case applies to why Yobo and Oboabona may never sync in the same team; both are no5.

Pique is good. Hes always been good and can only develop his game further. The people who voted him in the world xi at the last balon dor are more knowledgeable in the game than most of us on this forum.

dmcdad:
We are weaker? I think we are stronger...

Mcleo007: I cant get why you guys suggest that Pique is done. He is a quality CB; if you have played active football before, you will understand the assignage that comes with playing as a 5. In the role of CB, the No5 plays a little higher on the pitch than the no6. He is the one that marks the deep playing attacker, and is so open to being outwitted for pace and dribble because his approach is on the slow. Defensive flaws are easy to spot in his game, which does not reduce his defensive abilities. The no6 on fhe other hand plays a more reserved role and is the one we know to be the last man in defence. He is the finisher of all defensive works. His game is easier as he is afforded good time to read the game and correct the errors of his partner, if any. This is the reason someone like Puyol and Maacherano cannot make a decent defensive pairing or why Chygrinski never fitted into the Barca mode because he is natural no6 like Puyol. The case is similar to Pique and Batra's pairing towards the end of last season. Same case applies to why Yobo and Oboabona may never sync in the same team; both are no5.

Pique is good. Hes always been good and can only develop his game further. The people who voted him in the world xi at the last balon dor are more knowledgeable in the game than most of us on this forum.

logica: Pique's positional play is close to zero percent. His mind drifts and he loses bearing of where he is and of the opponents. That is his problem. The reason he pairs well with Puyol is simply because Puyol keeps snapping his fingers and shouting his name to keep him awake.

As opposed to Abidal's sense of positioning which is close to a hundred percent.

Johnpaul88: Enough bashing on Pique! Remember he's our most senior centre back. We should get used to having him around! If he is as bad as all of you want us to believe, what the hell is he still doing in the spanish national team?

logica: I am bashing Pique because I want him to be better. I was his number one fan in his revelation season (2008/2009); not knowing that the hidden trick was Puyol. Even recently with Puyol, he had gotten a lot sloppy and nonchalant; and I believe he was one of the reasons Guardiola got frustrated with Barca and left (apparently he and The Board differed on how to handle some "problem" players).

By the way, did you notice Barca almost conceded a late goal against Malaga? How did that dude get a free header in the 6-yard box? Aha, I thought so.

dmcdad:
I don't know why some peeps think one is just hating... If you do very well, I will laud it but if you don't, it's needed also to highlight it. As much as I always complain about Valdes due to his many mistakes, yet I won't fail to state that he was a saviour last night and he has been ok so far this season in my opinion.

I am a realist and that makes me face things the way they are and not due ti sentiments or hating. Let's always call a spade a spade.

Visca Barca

Rafa Marquez: “Sign a centre-back and stop improvising

Former FC Barcelona defender, Rafa Márquez, offered Spanish daily Mundo Deportivo an interview in which he had some interesting things to say about the club’s centre back issues. The 34-year-old is still playing for Club León in Mexico after a spell with the New York Red Bulls. The player was signed by Barça in 2003 and was a valuable asset to coach Frank Rijkaard in his defensive partnership with Carles Puyol. He left the club in 2010. Follow us after the break for a translation of the full interview.


MD: How are things going with your current team, León?

Marquez: Very good, we started very well in the championship, we’re 7th, we’re the best defense in the cup and hope to get to the finals.

Do you follow Barça news from Mexico?

Yes, I follow very closely what happens around Barça.

What do you think about Barcelona not signing a centre back despite all the problems they faced in the last two years?

I think they’ve been improvising for the position for a time now even though they lack a centre back. I think it’s necessary to be able to cover this position to stop improvising.

What are, in your opinion, the necessary characteristics that a defender needs to triumph at Barcelona?

The principal characteristics should be a good vision of the game, good going out with the ball, anticipation and most importantly defending well.

Out of all the mentioned candidates, who do you think is the best for Barcelona?

I think the two Brazilians, Thiago Silva and David Luiz, have the necessary characteristics to play at Barça.

Do you think Puyol, Piqué, Mascherano and young Bartra are sufficient for the whole season?

Not really. The absence of any one of these four for any reason would create a burden for the other three to face a season with so much competition and so many games.

Are there any lower-profile defenders that you’d recommend for Barça?

I think Hector Moreno would be a good addition to the team.

Why do you think Barça has suffered so much in defence lately?

I think they suffered a bit more because other teams study Barça very well and know about their weak points…these teams now know how to play against Barça and this makes them more vulnerable, especially in defence.

In the past seasons under Pep Guardiola, Barça defended set pieces through zonal marking. Now they turn to man to man marking. What do you think of this?

I think zonal marking is a very good strategy, even though it has its pros and also its cons. In this system you protect the dangerous zones but you leave out the dangerous scorers from the other team sometimes.



Read more: http://www.totalbarca.com/2013/interviews/rafa-marquez-sign-a-centre-back-and-stop-improvising/#ixzz2d67eAMi5

Johnpaul88: Good interview by Maquez! But if Barca need advise, they know where to get it.